Home seaming machine



Dec. 4; \1934.

A. G. HOPKINS HOME SEAMING MACHINE Filed Nov. 28, 1932 INVENTC$R vArihur G.Hopkms ATTORNEYS Patented Dec. 4, 1934 I .unlrso s TA :rasPATENT o es-Io]: t Losaosih j v v '7 .normsEAMiNG moment I p i Arthur G;"Hopkins, Maspeth, YL, assignorto Metal Packageflorporation, New York,'.N. Y., a T

, corporation ofDelaware 1 1 Application November '26, 1932, Seria'lNo.644,466

. This invention relates ate-seaming machines,- especially doubleseaming machines for sealing cans, and more particularly to a "compact,portable, vmannally operableseaming machine adapt 5 ed for honseholdnse.if

Small seaming machines for household-use are already known but. have notattained great popularity because some are difficult tooperate,requiring ,rdexterity' and experience; others, although automatic, are:diiiicultto ioperatabecause considerable @force is needed to drive the.machine; while still otherswdo not uniformly produce assatisfactoryseal. 'lllhe primary and gen-- eral object :of the present inventionresides in the provision :of a homelseamingvmachine which will bereliable, 'eilicient, sirnple, rugged, portable, and economical; whichwill be substantially fully automaticrin operation; which willconsistently enable even an inexperienced operator; to produceypenfectseals; and which will be, smooth in operation and which will require butlittle effort lac-drive. i More specifically, it is one i'importantobject of the present invention to simplify the-seaming roller mechanismby the provision of a "single seaming roller plate or yokeimovement \ofwhich operates :both thirst and :second operation :seaming rollers. Atu-rther and-important feature and object of the present inventionresides in an .1111- so usual arrangement 1710f the seaming roller yoke,

providing iorwoperationgof the seaming .roll er at a substantia lmechanical advantage, thereby developing a maximum seaming rollerpressure with a minimum of "operating .lI-BSlStBJlOB; The aro5 rangementis further so designed as to provide s.

relativelyltangential movement of the seaming roller relative to the canbein operated upon, resulting in increased smoothness of operation.Further objectsof the present invention cen- ;.eo ter about the can.table and liftermmeohanism therefor, and include r-making the samereadily adjustable 'for different .heigh-tswof can, and providing abalanced thrust or pressure on the table when lifting the same.

5 To the accomplishment of the foregoing and such other ;-ob.iects aswill hereinafter appear, my invention consists in the seaming machineelements and their melation one-to the other, .as' hereinafter aremoreparticularly described in the specification and sought to :be defined inthe claims. The specification is accompanied by a drawing in which: m

.,-F. ig. l is .a ,partiallysectioned side elevation of a seamingmachine embodyingfeatures of my .55 invention;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken in the plane of the line 2-21inFig.1.;

Fig; 3 is adiagram explanatory of .a feature of [the invention; and iFig. 4 is a section tl-n'ough the detachable chuck.- i r 1 m r Referringto the drawing, the specific form of machine here illustrated comprisesa frame includingea base 12 and an elevated head 14 interconnected bythe generally upright support 65. means '16. i This frame rmayhifdesired, *be made of .asingle casting, as shown. .Dhe .base .12 .carriesan elevatable camtable .18, while the head 14 carr-ies achuck .20mounted on'aich-uck spindle 22.

The head .14 isturther provided with a seaming 7.0 roller plate 30,generally in the form of a bifurcated yoke member. This member ispreferably pivotedtat one end, as-by meansof bearing :screw 32 threadedintohead 3.4,;and is actuated at its opposite end preferablyautomatically,- as by 75. means-of cam andscam follower mechanism 34and36. .Iheg-firstand second operation seaming rollers are respectivelyindicated at .38 and 40 and (are preferably mounted "on oscillatableplate 30 intermediate the-pivot 32 {and the cam follower 36,1ihconsequence of which the cam 01' operating doroe is multiplied bysubstantial mechanical ad-vantage when applied to the seami-ng roller.The plate 30 isso shaped that it .may oscillate. without interferencefrom (the chuck spindle 22, and, in the-particular case hereishown, theplate 80 is out away-as is indicated at 42,, to provide ample clearancearound the chuck spindle. i

i It will the understood that the yoke plate 30, with its spaced arms'44, moves as :a single rigid integraltmit, so that the cam followerrollers 36 are fixedly spaced. The cam 34 is preferably a face camthesurfaces of which may desirably be formed -.d-irectly upon. opposite.sides .of worm gear 104. The camfaces .34 are preferably similar andparallel, and thespacing or width of the cam therebetween ispreferablyequal to the spacing :between the cam .followers :3 6. With thisarrangement .the cam provides ,positive movement of the yoke platetoward oneside and then'toward the other, thereby bringing the first andsecond operation seaming rollersalternately into engagement with the canbeing sealed. To steady and guide the yoke plate during its operation,the ends 48 thereof be smoothly finished .and heldin grooves or rails.50 formed in the machine frame.

'I'he seaming .rollers fisrand 40 are preferably fixed-.adjustablymounted on the yoke plate 30 so as to enable the machine to accommodatecans of different sizes. Specifically, the seaming rollers are rotatablycarried on seaming roller arms 52 themselves pivoted on yoke plate 30 bypins 54. Pins 54 further carry adjustment forks 56 the body orintermediate portion of each of which is provided with a plurality ofholes 58 so located as to mate with one or another of a plurality ofholes 60 drilled through the yoke plate 30. It will be readilyunderstood, from an inspection of Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing, that byremoving the pin 62, the adjustment plates 56v may be moved as desiredto accommodate a particular diameter of can, whereupon the pin 62 mayagain be dropped through. the appropriate mating holes 58 and 60, thusfirmly locking the adjustment forks rigidly in their new position. Theposition indicated in Fig.2 is, of course, the outermost adjustmentintended to accommodate a can of maximum diameter, such a can beingindicated at '70.

The outer ends of adjustment forks 56 are provided with pressure screws64 threaded therethrough and bearing against the-seaming roller arms 52.Screws 64 permit a fine adjustment of the maximum compression caused bythe seaming roller. The adjustment is maintained by means of a lock nut66.

Can '70 rests upon can table 18 the upper surface of which is preferablyprovided with a plurality of concentric grooves corresponding todifferent standard can diameters. The can table is mounted at the upperend of a threaded stud '72 which is reciprocably mounted in base 12, asby the use of an unthreaded extension '74. The base 12 is provided withan upwardly facing cam surface '76 which mates with a cam element '78provided with operating means, here consisting simply of an outwardlyextending manually operable lever 80. (Jams '76 and '78 bothconcentrically surround the vertically reciprocable stud '72, the latterbeing slidable therethrough. Stud '72 has threaded thereon an adjustmentnut 82 the adjustment of which may be locked by cooperation with asimilar adjustment nut 84. It will be evident'that upon oscillation oflever 80, cam '78 will be elevated by the coaction of the mating camsurfaces, and cam '78 will in turn lift adjustment nut 82 and with itthethreaded stud '72 and consequently the can table 18. It has alreadybeen mentioned that the can '70 is of maximum size, and consequentlytable 18 is in its lowermost position. To accommodate a smaller can, itis simply necessary to turn the nuts 82 and 84 downwardly on threadedstud '72, thereby elevating the initial position of the can table. Thefinal position of the can table after swinging handle will be higherthan the initial position by the amount of lift of the cam sur- 60' face'76, and the adjustment of nuts 82 and 84 is itself an adjustment of thepressure which will be exerted between table 18 and chuck 20 during theseaming operation.

To provide for a certain amount of yieldability when applying thelifting pressure to the can, the can table 18 is preferably resilientlyrelated to stud '72. This may be accomplished by one or a plurality ofcompression springs, or, if desired, a slightly compressible Washer madeof resilient material may be interposed, as indicated at 86 in Fig. 1.The, can table 18 is both rotatably and slightly reciprocably related tothe centering screw 88, the friction of thrust preferably being takenupon an intermediate metallic washer 90.

It should be noted that cams '76 and '78, instead of being provided withmerely a single helical surface, are preferably provided with multiplecam surfaces. In the particular case here shown, four such surfaces areprovided. This balances the ressure exerted between the cams, andconsequently balances the upward thrust on the can table.

In changing the size of can to be sealed, it is necessary to change thechuck 20 as well as the table height and seaming roller positions. Tochange the chuck 20 it is simply necessary to unscrew the knurledrestraining nut 91 and thereupon to remove the chuck 20 downwardly fromthe lower end of the chuck spindle 22. The new chuck plate is applied byreversing this operation. Relative rotation of the chuck and chuckspindle is prevented by properly mating the end 92 of the chuck spindleand the hole 94 through the chuck, as, for example, by making the samesquare in cross section or round with a flattened side, thereby keyingthe same together for positive rotation.

The remaining mechanism of the machine is relatively simple and isalmost self-evident from inspection of the drawing. The head 14 isprovided with a horizontal drive shaft 96 which, for simplicity, ismanually operated by rotating an appropriate crank 98. Drive shaft 96 isgeared both to chuck spindle 22 and to cam 34 by appropriate gearingpreferably providing for a number of complete revolutions of the chuckspindle for a single revolution of the cam. In the specific case hereshown, drive-shaft 96 is geared to chuck spindle 22-through bevel gears98 and 100. Drive shaft 96 is geared to cam 34 through a worm 102 andmating worm gear 104. It is evident that the gear ratio produced by thebevel gears is far higher than that produced by the worm mechanism, andconsequently the can being seamed is rotated a substantial number oftimes during the firstand second seaming operations, both of the lattertaking place during a single rotation of the worm gear 104. Chuckspindle 22 is rigidly secured to bevel gear 100, and its upper end ispreferably reduced in diameter and carried in a bearing bushing 106,this being threaded into the machine head 14. Worm gear 104 is carriedon a transverse horizontal shaft 108 the outer ends of which are carriedin bearings formed in the side walls of head 14, these bearings beingomitted in Fig. 2 in order to clarify the construction of the seamingroller mechanism.

' The advantages obtained by the seaming roller plate arrangementheretofore described may perhaps be better explained by reference to theexplanatory diagram of Fig. 3. Referring to this figure, the seamingroller plate is pivoted at 32 and is operated by pressure upon a camfollower 36 the resulting movement of which is transferred to a seamingroller 38 which bears against the periphery of a can '70. The theorem ofVarigron states that if a body is in equilibrium, the algebraic sum ofthe moments about any point is equal to zero. The moment of a forceabout a point is, of course, the product of the magnitude of the forceand the length of the perpendicular drawn from the point to the line ofaction of the force. Referring now to Fig. 3, the moment of the camroller 36 about pivot 32 is equal and opposite to the moment of theseaming roller 38 about pivot 32. It will be evident that theperpendicular to the cam follower force, indicated at 110, is severaltimes the length of the perpendicular to the seaming roller force,indicated at 112, thus clearly showing the substantial gain in pressureor mechanical advantage obtained by the present layout. At the sametime, no-loss in compactness is entailedybecause the seaming rollerplate is arranged to extend directlyacross the top of the can andissodesigned as not to'interfere in its movement with the chuck spindle.This advantage app1ies,of course, to both seaming rollers, for both haveincreased force applied thereto. This increase in pressure may beexplained fromanother viewpoint. Referring to Fig, 3, it

will be evident that seaming roller 38 moves about the lever arm lll andconsequently describes an are extending in the same direction as theperipheral arc of can 70, the arcs intersecting relatively tangentiallyor at an acute angle- Consequently seamingroller 38 moves an appreciabledistance which is substantially greaterthan its actual movement inwardlyradially of the can.. It thereforefollows that theperipherallydirectedforce appliedto seaming roller 38 issubstantially multiplied as appliedradially to the can. i I i The seaming roller moves in an are gradually.

approaching the circumference of thecan in the direction of rotation ofthe can, the curves differing by only a very small pressure angle, andthis small pressure angle is extremely desirable because it obviates anytendency to wrinkle or crimp the seam. The arrangement produces apositive but nevertheless smooth and gradual seaming operation, and.forms perfect seals at all times and under all conditions. It will beunderstood that while, for the] sake of simplicity and symmetry, theopposite seaming roller 40 has not been positioned to move in. thedirection of rotation of the can, as has just been described inconnection with seaming roller 38, it is. possible to rearrange themechanism, if desired, to produce this result on both seaming rollers.However, it issatisfactory to apply the same to only;

oneseami ng roller becausethe'result inquestion is mostimportant andrmost desirable as applied to the first seaming operation. I

It is believed that the mode of constructing.

and operating the seaming machine of. my invention, and the manyadvantages thereof, will, for the most part, beapparent from theforegoing detailed description. The machine may be permanently fastenedin a suitable location, or it may be temporarily clamped by anappropriate C clamp toa convenient table or ledge from which.

it may later be removed and stored away after a batch of cans havebeensealed. In operation, the filled canwith a loose cover thereon is simplyplacedon the can table; the liftlever is then oscillated to elevate thecan and compress the same against the chuck; and the crank is thenturned until the first operation seaming roller moves into engagementwith the can and. away, and the second operation seaming roller movesinto engagement with the can and. away. Both seaming rollers will thenbe disengaged from the. can, and, by returning the lift lever back toinitial position, the finished sealed canmay be removed- Aftercompleting a batch of cans, if it is desired to change the size of canbeing operated upon, it is simply necessary to accommodate the desiredchange in height by altering the position of the lock nuts on thethreaded stud controlling the elevation of the can table. A change indiameter is accommodated by changing the chuck and by moving the seamingrollers relative to the yoke plate. The sealing of cans of the newdimension terference by the chuck may then he proceeded ready beendescribed. I

It will be apparent that while I have shown and described my inventionin. preferred form, many changes and modifications may bemad'e in thestructure diclosed, without departing from the spirit of the invention,definedin the following claims. r

I claim: I

r l. A seaming machine comprising can supporting and rotating mechanism,a seaming roller plate, means at one end of said plate pivotallymounting the same, means at the opposite end of the plate for operatingthe same, and a seaming roller intermediate the ends of the plate,whereby the seaming roller is moved with substantial mechanicaladvantage. l i

2 A- seaming machine comprising can supporting and rotating mechanismincluding a chuck and chuck spindle, a seaming roller plate extendingacross thetop of the chuck, means at one end of said plate pivotallymounting the same, means at the opposite end of the plate for operatingthe same, and a seaming roller intermediate the ends of the plate,saidplate being so shaped as to be oscillatable without interference by thechuck-spindle.

3. A seaming machine comprising can. supporting and rotating mechanismincluding a chuck and chuck spindle, a single seaming roller plateextending across the chuck, means pivotally mounting the same, a cam anda cam follower for operating the same, andfirst and second operationseaming rollers on said plate, said plate being so shaped as to beoscillatable without inspindle, and said seaming rollers beingdisposedon opposite sides of the chuck spindle so as to operatealternately upon opposite sides of a cam supported in the machine.

4. A seaming machine comprising can supporting and rotating mechanism, aseaming roller plate, means atone end of said plate pivotally mountingthe same, meansat the opposite end of the plate ioroperating the same,and a pair of seaming rollers intermediate the ends of the plate, saidseaming rollers being disposed on opposite sides of the chuckspindlesoas to operate alternately upon opposite sides of a can sup ported in themachine.

5. A seaming machine comprising can supporting and rotating mechanismincluding a chuck and chuck spindle, a seaming roller plate extendingacross the chuck, means at one end of said plate pivotally mounting thesame, means at the opposite end of the plate foroperating the'same, anda pair of seaming rollers intermediate the ends of the plate, said platebeing so shaped as to be oscillatable without interference'by the chuckspindle, and said seaming rollers being disposedon opposite sidesof thechuck spindle so as to operate alternately upon opposite sides.

of a can supported in the machine. l

6. A seaming machine comprising means for supporting and rotating a canincluding a chuck and chuck spindle, aseaming roller plate, means at oneend of said plate pivotally mounting the same, cam follower means at theopposite end of said plate, and a seaming roller mounted on said p"ateintermediate the pivot means and camfollower means, a cam cooperatingwith said cam follower for oscillatingthe platefadrive shaft, andgearing interconnectingsaid drive shaft, said chuck spindle, and saidcam.

71A seaming machine comprising means for supporting and rotating-a'canincluding a chuck with exactly as has al- Ill) and chuck spindle, aseaming roller plate, means at one end of said plate pivotally mountingthe same, cam follower means at the opposite end of said plate, andseaming rollers mounted on said plate intermediate the pivot means andcam follower means, a cam cooperating with said cam follower foroscillating the plate in order to bring the seaming rollers alternatelyinto operation upon a can, a drive shaft, and gearing interconnectingsaid drive'shaft, said chuck spindle, and said cam.

8. A seaming machine comprising means for supporting and rotating a can,a seaming roller plate, means at one end of said plate pivotallymounting the same, means at the opposite end of said plate for operatingthe same, and seaming rollers fixedly-adjustably mounted on said plateintermediate the pivot means and cam follower means, said fixedadjustment means providing adjustment of the location of the seamingrollers on the plate to accommodate different sizes of can.

9. A seaming machine comprising means for supporting and rotating a canincluding a chuck and chuck spindle, a seaming roller plate, means atone end of said plate pivotally mounting the same, cam follower means atthe opposite end of said plate, and seaming rollers fixedly-adjustablymounted on said plate intermediate the pivot means and cam followermeans, said plate being centrally cut away about the chuck spindle topermit oscillation of the plate, a cam cooperating with said camfollower for oscillating the plate in order to bring the seaming rollersalternately into operation upon a can, said fixed adjustment meansproviding adjustment to accommo date different sizes of can, a driveshaft, and gearing interconnecting said drive shaft, said chuck spindle,and said cam.

10. A seaming machine comprising means for supporting and rotating acan, a seaming roller plate having bifurcated arms, means pivotallymounting the plate to permit oscillation thereof, a pair of cam followerrollers on the inner sides of the arms of the plate, a double-face camsituated between said follower rollers and having a width equal to thespacing therebetween, the faces of the cam being parallel to jointlyprovide oscillating movement of the plate, and first and secondoperation seaming rollers mounted on said plate and so disposed as tooperate alternately upon said can.

11. A seaming machine comprising means for supporting and rotating acan, a seaming roller plate having bifurcated arms, means pivotallymounting the plate to permit oscillation thereof, a pair of cam followerrollers on the inner sides of the arms of the plate, a double-face camsituated between said follower rollers and having a width equal to thespacing therebetween, the faces of the cam being parallel to jointly provide oscillating movement of the plate, the outer sides of the platebeing provided with first and second operation seaming rollers mountedon arms fixedly adjustable relatively to the plate to accommodatedifferent sizes of can.

12. A seaming machine comprising means for supporting and rotating a canincluding a chuck and chuck spindle, a seaming roller plate having abody and bifurcated arms, means pivotally mounting the end of the bodyto permit oscillation of the plate, a pair of cam follower rollers onthe inner sides of the arms of the plate, a double-face cam situatedbetween said follower rollers and having a width equal to the spacingtherebetween, the faces of the cam being parallel to jointly provideoscillating movement of the plate, the outer sides of the arms of theplate intermediate the pivot and cam followers being provided withseaming rollers mounted on arms fixedly adjustable relatively to theplate to accommodate different sizes of can, the center portion of saidplate being so shaped as to permit movement of the plate relative to thechuck spindle.

13.A relatively small compact portable seaming machine for home canning,comprising a frame including a base, a head, and a support therebetween,said base carrying a can table and means for elevating the same, saidhead carrying a chuck and chuck spindle for rotating a can supported onthe can table, a seaming roller plate pivotally mounted below said headat one end of the plate, a cam follower mounted on the opposite end ofsaid plate, a cam cooperating with said cam follower for oscillatingsaid plate, a seaming roller mounted on said plate intermedi ate thepivot and cam follower for movement into engagement with a can, a shaft,and gearing interconnecting the shaft with the chuck spindle and thecam.

i l. A relatively small compact portable seaming machine for homecanning, comprising a frame including a base, a head, and a supporttherebetween, said base carrying a can table and means for elevating thesame, said head carrying a chuck and chuck spindle for rotating a cansupported on the can table, a single seaming roller plate pivotallymounted below said head, a cam follower mounted on said plate, a camengaging said cam follower for oscillating said plate, first and secondoperation seaming rollers mounted on said plate and disposed foralternate movement into engagement with a can, a

manually operable crank, and gearing intercon- A necting the crank withthe chuck spindle and the cam.

15. A relatively small compact portable seaming machine for homecanning, comprising a frame including a base, a head, and a supporttherebetween, said base carrying a can table and means for elevating thesame, said head carrying a chuck and chuck spindle for rotating a cansupported on the can table, a seaming roller plate pivotally mountedbelow said head at one end of the plate, a cam follower mounted on theopposite end of said plate, a cam engaging said cam follower foroscillating said plate, a pair of seaming rollers mounted on said platebetween the pivot and cam follower for movement in alternation intoengagement with a can, said plate being cut away to prevent interferencewith the chuck spindle during movement of the plate, a drive shaft, andgearing interconnecting the drive shaft with the chuck spindle and thecam.

16. A relatively small compact portable seaming machine for homecanning, comprising a frame including a base, a head, and a generallyupright support therebetween, said base carrying a can table andmanually operable means for elevating the same, said head carrying achuck and chuck spindle for rotating a can supported on the can table, aseaming roller plate pivotally mounted below said head at one end of theplate, a cam engaging said cam follower for oscillating said plate, apair of seaming rollers fixed-adjustably mounted on said plate betweenthe pivot and cam follower for movement in alternation into engagementwith a can, said plate being cut away to prevent interference with thechuck threaded stud freely reciprocable through and removable from saidpassage and mating cams, a can supporting table resiliently mounted atthe upper end of said stud and beneath said chuck,

and adjusting means for regulating the height of the can table both forcan size and holding pressure, said means including lock nuts threadedon said stud and resting upon the lifter cam for taking the liftingpressure thereof and transferring the same to the stud and can table.

' ARTHUR G. HOPKINS.

